30 tales of a Silver perm man
by FragranceCoffee
Summary: A 30 word theme challenge. Stories revolving around Gintoki and his interaction with characters from the Gintama universe, ranging from drabbles to one-shots. Rating varies throughout, snips of pairings here and there (will be stated at the start of each chapter).
1. Moving through

**Title: **Moving through

**Theme: **#3 - Tree

**Characters: **Child Gintoki

**Rating: **K+

**Words: **507

**Warning: **None, other than a very slight mentions of the war.

**Disclaimer: **All rights belongs to Hideaki Sorachi along with the numerous group of people who where involved in the production of the Gintama manga and anime.

**Summary:** Gintoki never liked watching as the last ray of sunset sinks away from the top of the tree he rests on.

* * *

Whenever the sun set to welcome the night, the silver haired boy would climb to the top of a tree, slowly watched the light dissolve away. It was something special, an everyday routine he would go through.

He loved how both the colours red and orange would dye the sky.

No–...that was a lie, an excuse he gave himself to watched the sunset. He just wanted to be closer to the lingering light, even if it meant by a few more second. The night scares him; those looming dark of nothingness made him shiver as he wonder how long more would it be before he could see the light.

Perhaps he was lonely, that he just didn't want to pass another night alone again. But he knows that no matter what, for how long, he would always be alone. A child with such strange hair colour was just like those strange creatures which came to their land – another monster among the rest.

Where were his parents? Did he have any siblings? Did his mother or father have strange hair colour as him? How had he been able to go on for so many years alone?

So many questions, but there were no answers he could find. To seek for them would be futile; no one would want a child like him close to them. Even so, he couldn't help but to wonder why did he continue linger in the dark; watching men die, smelling the thick blood in the air, seeking for food he could eat.

With a soft sneeze, the silver haired boy climbed down the tree, keeping a close eye to each branch he stepped on. However, despite how careful he was trying to be, he missed one of them and ended up landing onto the ground hard. A grunt escaped his lips as he pushed himself off the ground, rubbing his back.

A soft grumbling could be heard from his stomach before he rubbed his hands against the surface. It was as if he was trying to chase away the hunger, comforting the stomach with empty lies. But it didn't work. He let out a sigh as he looked up to the sky with a sense of dread. But this vanished when he saw the stars.

"Woah..." He gasped, mesmerized by the thousand of tiny lights in the dark sky. It wasn't as if he had never seen any stars before, but for once, he could help but to find the sight cheering him up.

With those small arms of his, he stretched them out and tried fruitlessly to reach out for the stars. A small smile found its way onto his blank features as he found a little ray of hope growing from within his chest.

No matter what, he won't be alone forever. One day, he'll find someone who'll be his friend, someone he could trust. Little did he know that the day was approach sooner than he had in mind. For now, at least he managed to forget about his hunger.


	2. Each time

**Title: **Each time

**Theme: **#1 - Moonlight

**Characters: **Gintoki (Child, Teen, Current)

**Rating: **T

**Words: **661

**Warning: **Slight spoilers to Courtesan of a Nation, mentions of war, blood and minor character death.

**Disclaimer: **All rights belongs to Hideaki Sorachi along with the numerous group of people who where involved in the production of the Gintama manga and anime.

**Summary:** The six good and bad memories Gintoki had under the night sky where the moon shined.

* * *

The first time he was conscious of the moon was on a night he first held a weapon to protect himself. He could still remember vividly fleeing throughout the night, hands and ragged cloth drench in the blood of the dead bandit while clenching tightly to the knife that saved his life – the moon's light being his only guild through the forest. Though he'll never admit it, the man's face hunted him in his dreams for more than three full moons.

The second time Gintoki was conscious of the moon was during a summer's evening where the sun had long set and he had trouble falling asleep. He opted to sit outside of his room and watch the moon. When Shouyou-sensei stumbled upon him, the man sat beside him, telling him a 'bed-time' story about some princess who lived on the moon.

What was the story about, Gintoki couldn't remember; all he remembered was watching how the moon's light shone gently on his sensei's face – the way Shouyou-sensei smiled, spoke and even looked curiously at direction Gintoki. When morning came, Gintoki woke to find himself back in his room, lying in the futon with the blanket tugged warmly over his body.

The third time was on a night Shouyou-sensei was taken away by the moon. The air was thick with ashes and his neck being uncomfortably sticky with sweat as he burrowed hid head to the ground. All that seemed to cross his mind was how much his throat hurt from the screaming and shouting, that the thought of water sure seemed nice. But he was too tired and the scene of Shouyou-sensei being taken away as the group headed away from the school wouldn't seem to stop repeating in his head.

Gintoki wished morning would never come so that he didn't have to think of how he'll have to explain to his friends why the school was burnt down and Shouyou-sensei was missing – he didn't want to faces familiar to smiles turn to one covered with tears.

The fourth time was on the battlefield where he was surrounded by corpse of both comrades and enemies. Despite being physically and mentally worn out, he continued to move, searching for anyone who could still be alive. For hours through the night he searched, wondering through the field just as if he was a child once again – but for two completely different reasons.

No matter how fruitless his efforts were, he still continued; he hasn't protected them yet, he wasn't fulfilling his promise with Shouyou-sensei – the last promise he made before the moon took their beloved teacher away.

The fifth time was on the night Gintoki deserted the group. There was no longer a point in keeping his promise with Shouyou-sensei when the man himself was dead. There was no longer a point in trying to protect people when his presence was literally boosting their moral, driving them to their death on the battlefield.

It was painful to stay, watching the people he once know slowly change; the familiar smile on Zura's face no longer seems to exist, only replaced by the constant frown of worry; the calm glint in Takasugi's eyes slowly gets replaced with a breaking sanity. He couldn't take the ever growing weight in his chest. On that night, he fled like he did when he was a child – the moonlight being his only guidance through the forest

Tonight, Gintoki watched the moon with a small smile on his face. With a carton of strawberry milk in his hands, he listens quickly to the soft snoring of a young yato clan girl's filling the room. He didn't know when or how, but he went back into carrying the weight of others once again. Whether it was a good or bad thing, he couldn't really give a damn. All that mattered to him was that he wouldn't fail this time around – couldn't. Life mightn't be easy, but it'll get better.


End file.
